


Delayed Happiness

by IloveHajishun111



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst, Ferdinand x oc, Hubert's birthday fic, M/M, ferdibertbirthday2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:41:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24079165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IloveHajishun111/pseuds/IloveHajishun111
Summary: Despite everything else, they still found their way back to each other.
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra
Comments: 1
Kudos: 20





	Delayed Happiness

**Author's Note:**

> I finally found time to post this fic here officially.

“Good morning! Uncle Vestra!”

A ginger-haired boy dashed into the Minister of Imperial Household’s office without knocking, as usual. Hubert looked up from his stack of paper, squeezing his eyes shut from the brightness of the boy’s hair, the feature that he inherited from his father. 

Frederick von Aegir was a spitting image of his father, Ferdinand von Argir, even his personality was that of the once boisterous Ferdinand back in their academy days. Just like his father, the boy was born into this world with the sore purpose of annoying the hell out of Hubert, and to remind him of what he had denied himself of.

A life with Ferdinand von Aegir.

“Frederick, a noble should never run,” came the voice of the Prime Minister before the said man stepped into his room, long curly auburn hair waving in the air like a sore in Hubert’s eyes.

And like usual, Hubert’s heart ached painfully in his chest every time that hair came into view, a lingering regret that shackled his soul for the last five years.

_ ‘I do not feel the same for you, Ferdinand. Better save that affection, infatuation, for someone else.’ _

Those were his words to a heartbroken Ferdinand, just a few days after they won the war, to crush those feeble feelings Ferdinand had for him, a treasure too precious that someone like him should never be worthy of it. 

So he lied, a rejection that each word left his mouth was a stab into his very heart. 

Hubert would never in his life forget the expression on the redhead’s that day. But even if the image of Ferdinand, face distorted with pain, amber eyes oozing with despair haunted him every night in his sleep, he knew that was the right decision.

Ferdinand deserved someone who could walk in the sunlight with him, not a twisted creature dwelling in the shadow.

Hubert reassured himself that, every day, every hour that he was awake, and especially when he sat on the shattering pieces of his heart, bleeding and trying not to weep, as he watched Ferdinand took a noble girl as his wife.

And soon, Frederick von Aegir came into the world.

“Hubert, are you sure you can take care of Frederick for a few hours?” Ferdinand’s voice dragged him back from his stupor, “If you are too busy, I can ask Dorothea.”

Hubert quickly put on his neutral expression, “I’m afraid the Emperor's wife is on her way to deal with some unexpected business at her Opera House and won’t be coming back until tomorrow morning.”

“Oh, I may have forgotten about that.” Ferdinand frowned and signaled his son to come closer, “I guess that can’t be helped. Please look after Frederick for me during my meeting with the Ambassador YYY. I will be gone for just a couple of hours.”

“No need for formality, Prime Minister.” Hubert sighed, “I promised you, have I? Besides, it’s not like this is the first time I have to look after your....spawn.”

Amber eyes met peridot for a split second before both averted their gazes.

“Then I’ll be going now.” Ferdinand turned his head around, “Frederick, don’t cause any trouble for Uncle Vestra. I’ll take you for a horse ride after I come back.”

“I promise, father.” Frederick nodded his head with a broad grin.

With a whip of his hair, the Prime Minister disappeared behind the wooden door, leaving Hubert to his self-loathing.

This distance between them, the formality, a fragile friendship. 

It was more than he had never asked for.

\--

“Uncle Vestra, I’m sleepy.” The four-year-old Frederick said with a yawn, after nearly destroying Hubert’s office with nonstop running and yelling until he settled back into the black couch on the far side of the room.

“Then sleep,” Hubert said as a matter of fact.

“I can’t. Father always sings me a song before I sleep.” Frederick was now looking at Hubert with two puppy eyes.

_ Spoiled brat. _ Hubert sighed and reluctantly stood up from his desk toward the young Aegir heir.

He sat on the edge of the couch, tugging the blanket up the boy’s body and said, “I can’t sing but I can tell you a story.”

Frederick nodded, eyes flickering.

Hubert then began the story of his Majesty, from the little broken girl transforming into the greatest Emperor of all time.

By the time, Hubert finished his story and looked down, Frederick was staring at him intensively.

“What is it? You suppose to fall asleep after being told a story.” Hubert sighed.

“Uncle Vestra, do you love my father?”

Hubert flinched, “Why do you ask?”

“I saw the way you look at him, just like how he always looks at me when he says he loves me.”

Hubert’s eyes wide open for a split second before turning back to normal. Hubert wondered if the boy could see the agony in flashing in his visible eye with those two amber orbs, which were identical to his father’s. Sighing, Hubert admitted, the feelings that had been hiding in the bottom of his heart, to a four years old boy, a perfect audience who could never judge him for baring his darkest secret to the world, even just for a few seconds, “I do. I love him more than anything in the world, even my life.”

Unknown to him, someone sucked in a small gasp outside the door.

“You know, Uncle Vestra.” Frederick said, eyes drooping low, “My father loves you too. He always stares at your picture before going to bed.”

With that, the young Aegir heir dripped into the land of sweet dreams. 

Hubert let out a long sigh, adjusting the blanket for the boy before opening the door of his office, wishing for fresh air to clear his mind. 

But once Hubert stepped out of the door, his eyes landed on the Prime Minister of the Imperial, who was leaning against the wall next to the door, eyeing him with unreadable emotions in his two bright eyes.

“Ferdinand? How long have you been standing here?” Hubert quickly let out a snide to hide his embarrassment.

“Hubert, a word please,” Ferdinand said firmly and without waiting for Hubert’s reply, he walked out of the foyer.

Hubert followed suit with a heavy heart.

\---

They stopped in a quiet corridor, out of earshot.

Ferdinand stared at the ground for a long moment, his back turned away from Hubert. And in a shaky whisper, the Duke Aegir asked, “Is it true?”

Hubert pretended, face void of emotion, “What is true?”

Ferdinand turned around so quickly, his hair made a graceful orange curve in the air, “What you just said to Frederick. Is this true?”

Hubert swallowed the bile in his throat, mouth quirked up into an awkward smirk, “Surely you can’t believe such words people say to coax a child to sleep are true, can you, von Aegir?”

Ferdinand was making that face again, like that day five years ago. And Hubert just wanted someone to end him already before this pain ate him alive.

“What Frederick said to you - ” Ferdinand murmured, a long sigh heaved out of his lips, “- that I look at your picture before bed - is true.”

Hubert’s eyes widen, mouth agape. 

With all the courage he mustered, Ferdinand looked up, unyielding determination flaring in those amber eyes, “I can’t do what you said, Hubert. Even after five years or for the rest of my life. I just can’t anymore.”

“What are you saying?” Hubert heaved out a cruel laugh.

“I tried to live the life that you wanted for me, Hubert.” Ferdinand yelled, “Even if I married and had Frederick, these feelings, infatuation as you phrased it, it still won’t leave me alone!”

“Prime Minister!” Hubert snapped, “What about your deceased wife? I thought you swore in front of Her Majesty that you would love her for the rest of your life.”

“I loved her enough!” Ferdinand snarled back, tears were falling down his freckled cheeks, “I loved her as a husband to his wife and I did my duty as her husband until she was lost to me in childbirth. But believe me when I say, not one second I was with her that I did not think about you.”

“Those words are inadequate for the noblest of nobles like yourself,” Hubert said coldly, “What would the people think of their Prime minister if they hear that?”

“Oh, they can say whatever they want.” Ferdinand opened a bitter smile, “I’ve passed the point of caring long ago.”

“As I say,” Hubert said through gritted teeth, an attempt to keep the last of his restraint in check, “You should save that...feelings for another, maybe the future step-mother of Frederick.”

“You want me to marry someone else  _ again _ ?” Ferdinand was screaming now.

“Yes!” Hubert yelled back, “Anyone’s better than me. I’m nothing but a blood-stained monster. You deserve someone as pure as you, who can walk with you in the sunlight.”

“And what makes you think I want  _ that _ !” 

With a frustrated groan, Ferdinand pushed Hubert forcefully against the wall and before Hubert could react, a pair of hot lips stole his breath away, and soon, his heart and soul followed as Ferdinand kissed him hard.

Hubert could feel the shards of Ferdinand’s broken soul-piercing through his flesh and mingle with his own shattered one, and together they drowned in the blood of their wounded, bleeding hearts.

Their kiss tasted of regret, of agony, of mourning for the last five years that they lost.

When they parted, foreheads pressed against each other, breath mingled, and words whispered between broken syllabus.

“Hubert, let me be the light to your darkness.” A sob, “I always love you. Only you.”

And for once, Hubert gave up, willingly letting himself be washed away by the light that he had been void of himself for so long.

“Do as you wish, Ferdinand, my one and only love.”

Their lips met in a sweeter kiss, limbs tangled and hearts melted into a puddle as the twilight cast its last light on their connected bodies.

\--

Later that day.

Frederick: Does that mean Uncle Vestra is my step-mother now?

Hubert and Ferdinand (trying to hide the kiss marks): *Blush feverishly*

  
  
\---  
  


Bonus Picture by kayt

<https://twitter.com/leona344/status/1252632925583167494/photo/1>


End file.
